ATLANTIS - VINETA
Vineta
Vineta - Jummne - Rethra - Ninive – Niniveta
Different Names of the Same Town
Different Names of the Same Town
"Once the very respectable city Vineta was situated at the estuary of the Oder-Stream into the Baltic Sea. It offered to the round of it living barbarians and Greeks a famous base. Very often hardly believable histories were told to the trophy of this city.
It is therefore permitted to remind of some noteworthyness.
Among all cities in Europe, this was certain the biggest. It was inhabited by Slav, mixed with Greek and barbarians. Also entering inhabitants of Saxony got the same permission to stay there if they did not appear in publicity as Christians as long as they lived there. Up to the downfall of this city, all inhabitants were misled of heathen customs. Normally however, one could not find more respectable and mild and gentile people at manners and hospitality than there were in this town. This city was rich at merchandise of all countries, and it possessed all conveniences and preferences.
It is told, that a Danish king had attacked this extremely prosperous place with a very big fleet and had destroyed it completely. The remains still now exist. One sees the sea there in triple form: three sounds rinse at the coast of that island, one of it has quite green, the second whitish appearance, whereas the third rages with permanent storms in terrifying movement.”
So, Helmoldus wrote in the twelfth century, a priest from Bosau at the Plöner Lake in his Slawen-Chronik, chapters 2, about the city Vineta. Approximately one century before him reported Adam, bishop of Bremen and Hamburg quite similar about this city. However he named the town Jumne. He wrote: „Uncommon and hardly believable things one tells about this city "and further: „It is really the biggest of all cities in Europe“ and he finished similarly to Helmoldus: " . . .the island is surrounded by three seas, one of it should be from deep-green look, the second whitish; the third waves continuously wild-moved from storms " .
Between both reports, there is a big difference. Adam wrote that the city is laying at the Oder-estuary, but according to Helmoldus, the city was laying at the Oder-estuary. Only the remains still exist. Therefore scientists think, that the town was destroyed in the time between the both, which means in the 12. Century.
At the same place, on the island Wollin, close to the city Wollin, in the Oder-estuary lay according to Saxo Grammaticus, who wrote about 1200 the history of the Danish kings the Viking castle Jomsburg. He described it as a big, solid, wonderfully furnished Sea-castle. In its inside there was a harbour, in which three hundred long ships could lie at the same time. The gate to the harbour was locked with iron doors. And there was a stone bridge over the gate to the harbour. - - - That must have been a majestic castle. - And not one single stone is remaining from it.
Between 1934 and 1936 there have been digs at Wollin, which didn’t bring to light anything which would have had similarity with these descriptions. As a result, the saga of Vineta got a little bit in oblivion. In the year 1926, the book „Arkona-Rethra-Vineta" of Karl Schuchhard was published. He has researched in this area. Besides Vineta, Arkona and the Jomsburg he searched also the castle of Rethra. Rethra was a gigantic castle according to the saga with nine gates, surrounded from a deep lake. The castle should have situated at the shore of the Tollens-Lake. Schuchhardt researched on the basis of the sagas and found out, that almost all sagas of Rethra didn't tell from a castle or from a temple but from a big mighty and splendid city, which had been destroyed by a terrible nature-event. The city had different names, was reported to him: Rethra, Reda, Beautiful Reda und NINIVE! - The sagas remind him to Vineta. There he finds out that the name NINIVETA occurs in an old handwriting of Helmoldus for Vineta.
From now some years ago, there have also been researches in the Tollens-Lake and around the lake, but there came no findings of the big city or from the castle to light.
Here I will also mention the book "Vineta - Atlantis of the North“ written from Ingrid Lange, Leipzig 1991. She is according to the general opinion that Vineta was a Norman trading centre, which was finally destroyed about 1180 A.D. after many preceding destructions. She considers Helmoldus somewhat confused because he didn't find the city, which still must have existed to his lifetimes according to her opinion, because Adam had glorified the town approximately hundred years before him. However she also wrote, that even the inhabitants of Wollin would have totally forgotten all memory to the city, so that they told Otto of Bamberg during his visit in Wollin (approximately 50 years before Helmoldus) Stettin would be the eldest and most elegant place in the country!
It is to be assumed that Otto of Bamberg's trip has led into this area because he has heard about the biggest and mightiest city of Europe, which should lie in this area. Such a trip was not a simple enterprise in the twelfth century. One can assume that he has undertaken the exhausting trip with big company. And a noble or bishop, that he was, spoke in Wollin with respectable and educated citizens of course. There he found out that Stettin is the eldest and most elegant place in the country! This miracle-city " Vineta – Ninive – Jumne - Rethra " existed no more for a very long time. Only the sagas told of this city, which had to have lain at the estuary of a wide stream. Nobody knew the exact place. Karl Schuchhardt wrote in his book, mentioned above, that in the years about 1000 A.D. everybody spoke about this miracle-city.
An old Holsteinian chronicle printed in the year 1674 mentioned the old city at the right place. There is written: „Oldenburg was fortified with an enormous wall in which was built a castle against the Danish army. This has been the seat of the ancien regent Herulorum. It was a huge and mighty seaside city. Later it got devasted and impoverished and it became a village.“ - The city Oldenburg ist part of the aera where the primeval city which had a diameter of twenty-four kilometers was laying.
In the chronicle there are no dates at which time this old town existed but the following date is the year 3690 B.C. That means that this city existed before the year 3690 B.C. At this time it was world-famous. But it was an ancient ruins town of the primeval times.
Among all cities in Europe, this was certain the biggest. It was inhabited by Slav, mixed with Greek and barbarians. Also entering inhabitants of Saxony got the same permission to stay there if they did not appear in publicity as Christians as long as they lived there. Up to the downfall of this city, all inhabitants were misled of heathen customs. Normally however, one could not find more respectable and mild and gentile people at manners and hospitality than there were in this town. This city was rich at merchandise of all countries, and it possessed all conveniences and preferences.
It is told, that a Danish king had attacked this extremely prosperous place with a very big fleet and had destroyed it completely. The remains still now exist. One sees the sea there in triple form: three sounds rinse at the coast of that island, one of it has quite green, the second whitish appearance, whereas the third rages with permanent storms in terrifying movement.”
So, Helmoldus wrote in the twelfth century, a priest from Bosau at the Plöner Lake in his Slawen-Chronik, chapters 2, about the city Vineta. Approximately one century before him reported Adam, bishop of Bremen and Hamburg quite similar about this city. However he named the town Jumne. He wrote: „Uncommon and hardly believable things one tells about this city "and further: „It is really the biggest of all cities in Europe“ and he finished similarly to Helmoldus: " . . .the island is surrounded by three seas, one of it should be from deep-green look, the second whitish; the third waves continuously wild-moved from storms " .
Between both reports, there is a big difference. Adam wrote that the city is laying at the Oder-estuary, but according to Helmoldus, the city was laying at the Oder-estuary. Only the remains still exist. Therefore scientists think, that the town was destroyed in the time between the both, which means in the 12. Century.
At the same place, on the island Wollin, close to the city Wollin, in the Oder-estuary lay according to Saxo Grammaticus, who wrote about 1200 the history of the Danish kings the Viking castle Jomsburg. He described it as a big, solid, wonderfully furnished Sea-castle. In its inside there was a harbour, in which three hundred long ships could lie at the same time. The gate to the harbour was locked with iron doors. And there was a stone bridge over the gate to the harbour. - - - That must have been a majestic castle. - And not one single stone is remaining from it.
Between 1934 and 1936 there have been digs at Wollin, which didn’t bring to light anything which would have had similarity with these descriptions. As a result, the saga of Vineta got a little bit in oblivion. In the year 1926, the book „Arkona-Rethra-Vineta" of Karl Schuchhard was published. He has researched in this area. Besides Vineta, Arkona and the Jomsburg he searched also the castle of Rethra. Rethra was a gigantic castle according to the saga with nine gates, surrounded from a deep lake. The castle should have situated at the shore of the Tollens-Lake. Schuchhardt researched on the basis of the sagas and found out, that almost all sagas of Rethra didn't tell from a castle or from a temple but from a big mighty and splendid city, which had been destroyed by a terrible nature-event. The city had different names, was reported to him: Rethra, Reda, Beautiful Reda und NINIVE! - The sagas remind him to Vineta. There he finds out that the name NINIVETA occurs in an old handwriting of Helmoldus for Vineta.
From now some years ago, there have also been researches in the Tollens-Lake and around the lake, but there came no findings of the big city or from the castle to light.
Here I will also mention the book "Vineta - Atlantis of the North“ written from Ingrid Lange, Leipzig 1991. She is according to the general opinion that Vineta was a Norman trading centre, which was finally destroyed about 1180 A.D. after many preceding destructions. She considers Helmoldus somewhat confused because he didn't find the city, which still must have existed to his lifetimes according to her opinion, because Adam had glorified the town approximately hundred years before him. However she also wrote, that even the inhabitants of Wollin would have totally forgotten all memory to the city, so that they told Otto of Bamberg during his visit in Wollin (approximately 50 years before Helmoldus) Stettin would be the eldest and most elegant place in the country!
It is to be assumed that Otto of Bamberg's trip has led into this area because he has heard about the biggest and mightiest city of Europe, which should lie in this area. Such a trip was not a simple enterprise in the twelfth century. One can assume that he has undertaken the exhausting trip with big company. And a noble or bishop, that he was, spoke in Wollin with respectable and educated citizens of course. There he found out that Stettin is the eldest and most elegant place in the country! This miracle-city " Vineta – Ninive – Jumne - Rethra " existed no more for a very long time. Only the sagas told of this city, which had to have lain at the estuary of a wide stream. Nobody knew the exact place. Karl Schuchhardt wrote in his book, mentioned above, that in the years about 1000 A.D. everybody spoke about this miracle-city.
An old Holsteinian chronicle printed in the year 1674 mentioned the old city at the right place. There is written: „Oldenburg was fortified with an enormous wall in which was built a castle against the Danish army. This has been the seat of the ancien regent Herulorum. It was a huge and mighty seaside city. Later it got devasted and impoverished and it became a village.“ - The city Oldenburg ist part of the aera where the primeval city which had a diameter of twenty-four kilometers was laying.
In the chronicle there are no dates at which time this old town existed but the following date is the year 3690 B.C. That means that this city existed before the year 3690 B.C. At this time it was world-famous. But it was an ancient ruins town of the primeval times.